3 incidents that ignited the Spirit of Cricket debate in 2022

"Spirit of Cricket" is an oft-used term in our sport every time a controversial incident ensues on the field. It's not a colloquially coined term though, with the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the governing body of the laws of cricket, defining it.

The MCC defines a preamble to the laws, stating that the sport must be played not just according to the laws, but also in the Spirit of Cricket. In essence, it drives home the quality of sportsmanship in the game.

That said, this term has often been uttered in times of difference of opinion over an incident on the field. Recent times have been a testament to the same, and the year 2022 alone has documented quite a few instances.

Here's a look then at three instances of the Spirit of Cricket debate being triggered in 2022.

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#3 Rishabh Pant calling his batters back in IPL 2022

The Delhi Capitals (DC) threatened to pull off the impossible against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in an IPL 2022 clash at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Needing 36 to win off the final over, Rovman Powell clubbed Obed McCoy for three sixes off the first three balls before chaos ensued.

A full toss that seemed above the waist wasn't called a no ball, leading to fury in the Capitals camp. So much so that skipper Rishabh Pant was seemingly signaling to his batters to return to the dugout and assistant coach Pravin Amre walked onto the field to have a word with the umpires.

While DC eventually lost the game, Amre was handed a one-match suspension and Pant was fined 100 percent of his match fee. This reignited the debate of the Spirit of Cricket, with some sympathizing with Pant having reacted so in the heat of the moment and others reckoning his reaction was just not on.

This also brought back memories from IPL 2019, when a furious MS Dhoni stormed onto the field to have a word with the umpires over a similar incident.

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#2 Matthew Wade 'obstructs' Mark Wood

The opening T20I between Australia and England at the Perth Stadium on Sunday, October 9, saw the Spirit of Cricket debate resurface. As Matthew Wade cloughed a Mark Wood delivery and took off, he turned back to make his ground while the bowler ran after the ball attempting a catch.

His left arm came in the path of Wood as he put in a dive and the ball dropped safely. England captain Jos Buttler was initially gobsmacked but decided against taking it upstairs for "obstructing the field", later citing that he may have done so had it been a World Cup game.

Reactions to the same once again brought about the Spirit of Cricket discourse with some feeling that Wade did it on purpose and others baffled at England choosing against appealing for 'obstructing the field'.

It sure has been a spicy start to England's Australian sojourn ahead of the T20 World Cup though.

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#1 Deepti Sharma runs Charlie Dean out for backing up too far

The Indian women's cricket team's tour of England last month ended in dramatic fashion, with Deepti Sharma running Charlie Dean out for backing up too far. It was the final wicket of the last ODI at Lord's, scripting a 3-0 sweep in favor of the visitors.

What followed was a rage of opinions on social media, with the quintessential clash between the Spirit of Cricket and the rulebook taking centerstage. It went on and on, with various stakeholders having opposing views over whether this mode of the run out, recognized to be legitimate in the eyes of the Marylebone Cricket Club, was on or not.

Flashbacks of Ravichandran Ashwin running Buttler out in an IPL 2019 clash came screaming back soon after. Very few moments spark the Spirit of Cricket debate as much as this mode of dismissal, do they?

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